Modern wood heating industry celebrates 1GW milestone under Renewable Heat Incentive
Installed capacity of modern wood heating systems under the Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) have broken through the 1GW milestone earlier this month, thanks to strong demand in commercial, industrial and public sector organisations.
Modern wood heating boilers burn wood pellets, chips, briquettes or logs and feed the heat into a central heating system or, in some cases, directly into industrial processes. Following a political campaign in 2008, led by the REA and Friends of the Earth, the RHI was launched in late 2011 to drive uptake of renewable heating systems in public and private sector applications. The scheme was expanded this spring to include more technologies and domestic installations.
There are 4,926 wood heating installations accredited under the non-domestic RHI, providing 1GW of reliable green heat to UK businesses and organisations, such as farms, factories, care homes, hotels and churches. PwC analysis, published by the REA in April, found that wood heating accounted for 56% of investment and over 90% of renewable heat generation between 2010 and 2012, demonstrating its excellent value-for-money. Of all the forms of low carbon heating or power generation with significant UK growth potential, 1MW+ wood heating is the cheapest in terms of financial support from Government.
Dr Nina Skorupska, REA Chief Executive, said:
“Thousands of UK businesses have realised the benefits of biomass for delivering reliable, low cost, low carbon heating, and yet we’ve only just scratched the surface. We want renewable technologies to be the go-to option for all buildings and industrial processes, which will make a huge dent in our greenhouse gas emissions and greatly reduce our dependence on imported gas. To secure this, the Government must take the advice of the Committee on Climate Change and commit to sufficient funding for the RHI in the next spending round.”
The Wood Heat Association (WHA) was launched as a new affiliated trade body of the Renewable Energy Association in May. Together, the two associations are working to secure a sustainable future for the modern wood heating industry. WHA Interim Chairman Julian Morgan-Jones said:
“1GW of wood heating under the RHI is a major breakthrough. Our industry is growing fast, from boiler manufacturers and installers to fuel producers and distributors. We want that growth to be both successful and sustainable. As well as stability in the RHI, we also need to do more work on upskilling system installers and developing widely accepted installation standards for all boiler sizes. This is crucial for ensuring that as the industry grows, it maintains a solid reputation for excellent customer satisfaction.”
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